PITTSBURGH–(BUSINESS WIRE)–RoadRunner Recycling, a leading technology-driven company transforming the traditional waste and recycling sector, today announced the closing of its oversubscribed Series C round with a $10 million total investment from Avery Dennison, the global leader in materials science and manufacturing, and Valo Ventures, the purpose-driven venture capital firm. This investment comes on the heels of the original Series C funding round of $28.6 million led by e.ventures and Greycroft in March 2020. In addition to the receipt of funding, Jeroen Diderich, vice president and general manager of Label and Graphic Materials North America at Avery Dennison, will join RoadRunner’s board as an observer.
The funds from both investments will be used to support the continued expansion of RoadRunner, and its end-to-end waste and recycling management services, to at least 10 new markets across the United States. Additionally, the funding will be applied to further the development of its AI/machine-learning technology and grow internal teams to amplify the company’s goal of transforming how U.S. businesses recycle.
RoadRunner Recycling’s journey began in 2014 when founder and CEO, Graham Rihn, became obsessed with the growing issue that was America’s broken recycling system. In an effort to address the massive void between market demands and the existing waste industry’s service offerings, RoadRunner endeavored to develop an effective solution to help businesses recycle more efficiently, at scale, while lowering costs.
In addition to Avery Dennison’s $5 million investment, RoadRunner has partnered with the company to develop a customized pilot program, leveraging its technological capabilities and operational capacity, to support Avery Dennison’s aggressive zero-waste goals.
“This investment represents Avery Dennison’s ongoing commitment to sustainability and helping solve the matrix byproduct recycling challenge,” said Jeroen Diderich, vice president and general manager, Label and Graphic Materials North America. “With RoadRunner Recycling’s technological capabilities and their unique approach to smarter recycling, we are confident we will find new opportunities to help our customers meet their zero waste-to-landfill goals.”
RoadRunner founder and CEO, Rihn, added, “We see these investments as an endorsement of our vision, from two world-class organizations, to upend the outdated and inefficient recycling sector through our unparalleled technology, services, and industry expertise.” He continued, ”We are especially excited to have a forward-thinking, global leader like Avery Dennison not only align with our mission enough to invest but also to choose us as a partner to contribute to the company achieving its sustainability goals.”
To date, RoadRunner has raised a total of $59.1 million, expanded to serve more than 6,000 customers, and has helped businesses divert approximately 130,000 tons of waste from landfill while also increasing recycling rates by 10x their average and saving more than $20 million on recurring waste and recycling costs. In this next chapter, RoadRunner will continue investing in its team and technology to advance its sustainable waste and recycling management solution for businesses in new and existing markets.
For more information on RoadRunner and its services visit: https://www.roadrunnerwm.com/
About RoadRunner Recycling
RoadRunner Recycling is on a mission to elevate recycling in a world dominated by waste. The company provides custom recycling and waste solutions engineered to improve waste stream management, serving thousands of commercial businesses from more than 20 industries including healthcare, manufacturing, education, retail and hospitality. RoadRunner leverages proprietary technology to boost cost savings, improve recycling rates, and deliver unparalleled customer experiences. For more information, visit www.roadrunnerwm.com.
About Avery Dennison
Avery Dennison (NYSE: AVY) is a global materials science company specializing in the design and manufacture of a wide variety of labeling and functional materials. The company’s products, which are used in nearly every major industry, include pressure-sensitive materials for labels and graphic applications; tapes and other bonding solutions for industrial, medical and retail applications; tags, labels and embellishments for apparel; and radio-frequency identification (RFID) solutions serving retail apparel and other markets. Headquartered in Glendale, California, the company employs more than 30,000 employees in over 50 countries. Reported sales in 2019 were $7.1 billion. Learn more at www.averydennison.com.
